20 Incredible Facts About Indian Railways That You Probably Did Not Know

Do you know everything about the next train you will catch? Or the next station you will visit? Here are 20 facts about the Indian Railways you might not be aware of.

Indian Railways – the lifeline of transport system in our country, is evidently a huge setup, and an organization with numerous branches. With a dedicated ministry and budget in its name, railways help large portions of the country’s population in running their daily businesses successfully. However, there are a few things you probably don’t know about our trains and how the entire system works. Read on, and maybe you can remember them; or simply be awed every-time you pass by something even remotely related to the railways.

1. Indian Railways is the largest railways network to be operated by a single government and is the world’s third largest network with a total length of 127,760 kms.

Photo Source: able2know

The annual tally is 8421 million passengers on 9991 trains connecting 7,172 stations across the country. The number of daily passengers on the railways is said to be larger than the population of some countries. It also carries 1014.15 million tons of freight annually.

2. Indian Railways owned the longest railway platform in the world at Kharagpur with a length of 2,733 feet. Now, breaking the record, Gorakhpur station has recently taken its place with a span of 4,430 feet.

3. Two historical railway elements are included in the UNESCO’ World Heritage site list – the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, and the Indian Mountain Railways.

The Indian Mountain Railways includes three railways – the Darjeeling Himalayan Railways, Nilgiri Mountain Railways and Kalka Shimla Railway. All three trains have been functional for some 100 years. The Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus is a classic fusion of Gothic art with Indian architecture.

4. Indian Railways has five luxury trains.

The Maharajas’ Express (begins in Delhi but the itinerary differs) and

The Deccan Odyssey (begins in Maharashtra but itinerary differs).

They are the pride of Indian Railways as they hold an eminent position among the luxury trains of the world. Palace on Wheels is the oldest one of them.

5. The Vivek Express (Dibrugarh to Kanyakumari) travels a distance of 4273 km, which is the longest run in the railways. The shortest run is taken by a few scheduled services between Nagpur and Ajni – a total of 3 kms.

6. Srirampur and Belapur are two different stations in Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra. They are both situated at the same point on the railway route, but are located on opposite sides of the track.

10. The diamond crossing (dubbed so by railways themselves), in Nagpur, is one-of-its-kind, from where trains go East, West, North and South.

11. The Indian Railways is constructing the world’s highest rail bridge over Chenab.

The bridge will be 1,315 meters long and will use up to 25,000 tonnes of steel. The idea was initially conceived in 2008 but the project was paused due to safety concerns. The work, however, began in 2010 and it is expected to be completed this year.

12. The longest tunnel in the country is Pir Panjal Railway tunnel in Jammu and Kashmir which is 11.25 kms long.